The Babysitter
by Nixie Girl
Summary: Lucy Hurley has been an immortal teenager for a very long time. What happens when she runs across a past charge?


Highlander

Disclaimer – I don't own Highlander or any of its characters.

Summary – Lucy Hurley has been an immortal teenager for a very long time. To both satisfy her wish to care for children, and keep up her image as a simple college student, she occasionally takes up babysitting. What happens when she has an encounter with two of her past charges?

The Babysitter

I was in the middle of shopping for groceries when I felt it…the buzz of Immortality. Immediately I went on alert. This wasn't holy ground, but there were an awful lot of people around. This could get very messy. I moved through the stacks silently like a cougar stocking my prey. If they were going to attack, I wanted to size them up first.

I just managed to zero in on him. He was a tall man, red hair, blue eyes, looked around 20 years old…a baby, but there was no telling with immortals…I was living proof of that. I certainly didn't look my age. I was just about to move back into the shadows, when he turned and called out, "Lucy? Lucy Hurley?"

I froze wondering how he knew me, nearly panicking as the young man was advancing on me. He was smiling, "Holy crap! You look exactly the same as I saw you last. Do you remember me, it's me, Richie. Richie Ryan. I never could forget you, you were probably the best babysitter that I ever had."

The marshmallows and chocolate chips I was carting around dropped to the floor in shock. I had been babysitting for a very long time, but this was the first time that I had run into a charge of mine after changing areas immortal or not. I had no real time to make a break for it, before he was hugging me and swinging me around like a long lost family member. I was at a complete loss for what to do.

Richie pulled back a moment with a broad smile on his face like it had been announced that Christmas had come early, "Wow you look great! We're the same age now so it's not so creepy for me to have a crush on you. What do you say about grabbing a beer? I know this place…great atmosphere…good music. What do you say about getting together there…it's practically holy ground. We could maybe catch up a bit."

He looked so hopeful that before I had really thought about it, it slipped out, "Um…sure."

He beamed from ear to ear, "Wonderful. How about tonight at Joe's…it's this little jazz bar, you'll love it."

He rattled off the address, when he would likely be there, and giving me one last smile dashed away. I was still half wondering what happened. I picked up my marshmallows and chocolate chips and decided to continue shopping. It wasn't like he had challenged me…in fact it was almost like he had asked me out on a date. I had dated immortal men before, but it almost always ended in tears, and I wasn't quite sure that I was up for that sort of action. But I wasn't willing to make an enemy so I would indulge him for a while and then drift out like normal.

I went back to my dorm room, put my food up in my food pantry, and completed some homework and then as it was ticking closer to the time, I went to look at my closet of clothes. I almost always dressed like a kid, and tonight…it just didn't seem quite right. I half wanted to dress like someone of my true age would…or at least someone in their late 80s, complete with the wrinkles and all. Maybe if I looked like a frail old woman that would decrease his interest in me. Thinking back on Richie, he was never one to give up on something when he got his mind set on it. I doubted that he'd put off a reunion meeting even if I looked like a walking prune.

I took a long shower, shaving even though I doubted that anything between the two of us would progress that far. It was just something that made me feel more feminine and was oddly relaxing when I got into it. After the shower, I smeared on an assortment of lotions and creams. I blow dried my hair and got it just like I wanted to, put on a little make-up. It made me look just a tad older…old enough to buy a round and not look like my ID was a fake. Not that I often drank when out and about. It was just a bad idea to be incapacitated when you had a permanent contract out for your head, with any number of characters willing and waiting to collect.

Looking at my clothes, I sighed…there was nothing that just was very right for the occasion: "Hey…I used to babysit you, but I'm not totally comfortable with dating you….but hey…thanks for asking me out." So I laid out around six outfits that I thought would do the job.

As I was debating them Ashley, one of the girls in my unit, burst into my room, "Hey Alice, do you have the notes for...? Oh, what's all this? Does our little shut-in have a hot date? Who is he? Is he that techy nerdy guy who's always super nice and giving you programs he created to help your computer out? Or is it that jock you're always tutoring…he may not have much for brains…but god he's good looking. Oh, god…it's a baseball player, isn't it! Please tell me you have enough sense to stay away from them! I heard that they have this thing…that they're just sleeping with as many girls as they can."

I couldn't help it…calm collected Ashley, the accountant in training, was freaking out over this….I lost it and laughed, "Relax…it's not a Baseball player. I've heard the rumor, and am not interested in just becoming a number for one of them. It's not a tech guy…it's not even Ray, and I do agree that he is quite dishy, but he's dumb as rocks. I want someone somewhat mentally stimulating. I'm not looking for a rocket scientist or something like that…but someone who knows that a donuts, burgers, fries, and pizza do not make up the four major food groups."

Ashley smiled and said, "I think you're setting your priorities too high. I know no guys our age that harbor those beliefs…and I have a brother so…I think I sort of know how they think."

I shrugged, "He's out there somewhere. I just have to find him. Until then, I have to get ready for tonight. You're good with this sort of stuff. What do you think?"

She looked over my clothes, and then asked, "Sure. What look are you going for?"

I frowned, "I'm think I'm going for a look that says: "I'm going out with you because I don't want to burn bridges…but I'm not entirely convinced that I'm interested in dating you yet." Do you think I have anything remotely close to something like that here?"

Ashley smiled and said, "Nope, but if we mix this top with that skirt…I think we're on to the right page. Is that how you're going to wear your hair?"

I raised an eyebrow, "Is there something wrong with it?"

Ashley sent me a reassuring look, "No, it's just that if you wear it down…it just makes you just that much more approachable…if you wear it up…it's not exactly an invite to run his fingers through it after a round of passionate floundering."

I laughed, "Passionate floundering? Where on earth do you come up with this sort of stuff?"

Ashley, rubbed her Icy blue polished nails on her sleeve, "I'm the expert on boys remember? Besides…guys don't become great lovers until they mature quite a bit. I'd wager that there is a lot of passionate floundering before they get good at it…well…if they do."

She got dressed and helped me with my hair and then rushed out to let me get my clothes ready. I dressed and did the quick model thing happy to meet with her approval, and once she was happy, I handed her my notes for the day with the promise that they would be returned before class on Wednesday. I slipped on my leather jacket, and tucked a sword in the breast pocket.

I gave myself a spritz of perfume and then headed out the door, only to get to the sidewalk and realize that I had left my phone and wallet on the counter. I grabbed them, electing a laugh from Ashley who had grown accustomed to my 'air-headed' nature. It seemed to never fail that I would have to return into the dorm two to three times for one thing or another. Sometimes I would leave for class without a calculator, or my laptop, and other times…it was my wallet and cash when I was going out and about.

I hopped into my Jeep, and drove to where Joe's was. It was closer than I had originally expected it to be, but parked and gave myself a once over before going inside. It wasn't hard to see that it was potentially an immortal hotspot, as two heads whipped in my direction when I stepped into range, but despite the twitching my hand was doing, I would play it cool as long as necessary. It wouldn't be my first tango outnumbered, and outgunned.

Richie was smiling and waving me over to the table where he sat with another handsome immortal. This one was larger than Richie, and was older, but by how much, I couldn't be sure. This dark hair immortal looked like he could crush me with a finger, let alone his bicep. He was impeccably dressed and his hair was pulled back in a simple ponytail with a Celtic design on it. That meant that he either liked that kind of stuff, which was unlikely, or he was tied to it culturally. If I was uncomfortable being around unknown immortals…that hulk sized immortal was clearly just as uncomfortable.

Richie crossed the distance and said, "You came. I was just about to give up on you."

He grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the dark immortal and cheered, "Duncan, this is the girl I told you about…the girl who used to babysit me. She made the best cookies. Oh, and the stories that she came up with…they put the TV shows that I used to watch to shame. Lucy, this is my teacher and friend, Duncan MacLeod, Mac, this is my old babysitter, Lucy Hurley."

He took my hand in a handshake and said, "It's nice to meet someone from Richie's past."

I gave a thin smile still uncomfortable and said, "I'm glad that he found someone to guide him in the introduction to the game. Too many of us are lost during the first few years of play."

Duncan gave a sad smile and said, "Too true."

Richie pulled out a chair for me to sit down, and I did so, hesitantly. Richie and Duncan each took a seat and a waitress came by and set a couple of drinks down in front of them, and then asked, "What can I get you, hun?"

I just bit my lip and then asked for a Belgian beer. She checked my ID, but seemed pleased with it. It wasn't long before we were joined by another person…a man with a lot of silver in his hair. He walked slowly with a cane, and looked a bit rough. He frowned and asked, "Wow, you look like the spitting image of a girl I used to know once. You wouldn't happen to be related to a Vera Whorl, are you?"

Duncan smiled wryly, "I'd wager that she is that girl, Joe. She's one of us."

He laughed and said, "Vera Whorl, I never thought I'd see you again. Wow, it's been…(Whistle)…well, I was just a small boy then…probably 7 or 8. Do you still cook?"

Feeling completely out of my element the whole situation considered, I sighed, "Not usually. Living in the dorms doesn't usually allow for much real cooking. Some dorms allow for it, but this is not one of those. The one I'm living in only allows for a microwave and coffee pot."

He blew out a long sigh, "Oh, that's too bad. You were, and I'll wager still are a damn fine cook. You don't lose that even after taking a bit of a vacation. (Turning to Richie and Duncan) I used to get quite excited when she came over to babysit. Mom was not a remarkable cook at all. The biscuits were rocks, and anything that wasn't solid gave you indigestion. She stopped cooking dinner ahead of time just shortly before Vera came to work for us. My stomach still craves those days… If you could only taste her meatloaf…well…it rivals yours Duncan…and that's saying something."

Duncan smiled and looked over at me and said, "Well, I suppose that is something. When I first had Joe over for dinner, he said that the meal took him back to his youth. I always believed that he was talking of his mother, not just a cute immortal."

I blushed and said, "Well, the three of you flirts are much too kind. I'm just someone who's lived a long time, and is somewhat set in my ways. I probably should just stay away from babysitting. It's the only career that I've ever seen people from my past again…and I believed that I was doing quite well by traveling over the countryside. This was a first, and to be honest…I wasn't quite sure what to expect. One can never be too careful. Though for people like us…who can't have children…it was a nice escape for a while."

There was a bit of understanding in all of their faces. Duncan asked, "Are you going to be in the area long?"

I stiffened a bit…part of the reason I had survived as long as I had was because I was careful. It seemed that this whole night was throwing caution to the wind. I tried to relax the deer in headlights look and said, "No…just another eight weeks. I'm transferring to another university at semester. It's easier that way."

Duncan then smiled, "Well if you're ever in the area…don't be a stranger. Any friend of Joe and Richie's is a friend of mine. Joe's bar here is practically Holy Ground."

I finished my drink and said, "I'll keep that in mind. Well, this has been very unusual evening for me. Not bad, but strange. Thank you for not head hunting tonight. I wish you all well."

I paid my tab and walked out of the door, giving one backward glance at the trio of men who sat there…two immortal, one mortal…all of which knew my secret. I'd stick to my word and stay around till the end of the semester, and if they didn't seek me out in a negative way…I'd mark them as potential friends, but one thing was for sure…no more babysitting pre-immortals.


End file.
